Insurer Commits $17.5 Million For I-84

Money Will Go Toward Mismanaged Stretch Near Waterbury

March 24, 2007|By EDMUND H. MAHONY; Courant Staff Writer

Gov. M. Jodi Rell's office has obtained a $17.5 million commitment from a construction industry insurer to begin rebuilding a mismanaged highway improvement project on a stretch of I-84 outside Waterbury.

The commitment, the first in what could be a series of collections the state hopes to make from construction companies or their insurers, has been promised by the bonding company USF&G, a division of Travelers. USF&G guaranteed work by L.G. DeFelice Inc., the now defunct construction company awarded a $52 million contract to rebuild the 3-mile stretch of highway in Waterbury and Cheshire.

The state Department of Transportation has widely varying estimates of the cost to repair the project. After obtaining a $27 million estimate from one private consultant, the department hired another, who lowered the projected cost to $19 million. Some government engineers have said privately that the cost could exceed $27 million.

Rell wants the state's contractors to pick up the bill for defective work, sparing taxpayers additional costs. In a press statement issued jointly with other state officials, she said that the USF&G settlement is a significant step in that direction.

``I said we would protect the interests of the state and our taxpayers and that the responsible parties must be held accountable,'' Rell said. ``Now we can move forward and I have directed the DOT to make the repairs as quickly as possible.''

Continuing disclosures about lapses in the I-84 project portray it as a multimillion-dollar failure. About 90 percent of the underground drainage system connected to the rebuilt roadway has been found to be substandard, defective or nonexistent -- creating the risk of subterranean washouts and possible roadway collapses. In addition, there have been engineering faults connected to overpasses, pavement placement and highway access ramps.

L.G. DeFelice ceased operations for financial reasons and left the I-84 job incomplete between the 2005 and 2006 construction seasons. The company has since reconfigured itself and changed its name. It now is involved in the Quinnipiac River bridge replacement project in New Haven.

The state Department of Transportation also is negotiating in an effort to collect money to fix the I-84 job from the Maguire Group, a consulting engineer the state transportation department hired at $6 million to inspect and approve the work done by L.G. DeFelice. Maguire's work also was insured by a private insurer.

Sources involved in the negotiations said the state is seeking about $2 million from either Maguire or its insurer. If Maguire agrees, the state will have collected an amount close to the reduced, $19 million repair estimate.

Although there has been public discussion about who should pay to fix the I-84 mess, little has been said in public by anyone -- neither state officials nor contractors -- about what caused it. State transportation officers have blamed the deficient work on DeFelice and Maguire, which will not discuss the matter.

The state transportation department claims it detected problems when state employees investigated a sink hole that opened near the roadway in early 2005. But transportation officials will not explain why they didn't detect construction lapses as they occurred through routine oversight of private contractors.

During a series of interviews and public statements over the last six months, transportation officials have given conflicting views on whether they are obligated to perform even minimal physical inspections of work by their contractors.

When asked a month ago which state employees were assigned to the I-84 job and what their duties were, a transportation spokesman declined to answer, saying he was prevented from disclosing the information because the matter was under investigation.

One of the agencies investigating the I-84 project is the FBI.

As recently as a month ago, even as negotiations were underway with USF&G, a state consultant was continuing to compile a list of defective work. Among other things, state records obtained by The Courant show that ground-penetrating radar scans had detected at least two possible sinkholes on the eastbound portion of the highway project.

In both instances, the radar results were described as indicators of potential safety problems which could lead to highway collapse. In both cases documented in the records, immediate repair work was ordered.

Other sources have said radar scans have detected as many as eight possible sinkholes. A transportation spokesman said Thursday that he had no information about additional sinkholes.

Rell was joined by Attorney General Richard Blumenthal and transportation commissioner Ralph Carpenter in announcing the $17.5 million commitment from USF&G. They said a contract to repair the drains is expected to be completed this year.

The three said the state plans to collect additional money beyond what it stands to receive from USF&G and Maguire.